MANILA (Mabuhay) – President Benigno S. Aquino III cited peace and development reforms in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) during the 2nd Local Government Summit in Davao City on Wednesday.

In his speech, the President mentioned that the ARMM is among the places in the country which have apparently been left behind by progress but eventually caught its pace because of government initiatives to spearhead progress.

ARMM is composed of the provinces of Basilan, Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

President Aquino cited 2013 data from the Department of Health-ARMM which showed that a total of 45,659 women from ARMM were given services for prenatal visit and 36,876 for post-pregnancy, in addition to 14,179 babies who underwent newborn screening.

Under the Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps), the President noted that at least 389,656 individuals from ARMM became members since the beginning of 2014.

He explained that the national government’s goal is that whatever level or amount of attention Filipinos from the National Capital Region (NCR) are getting, citizens from the ARMM would also equally receive.

The President also lauded ARMM Regional Gov. Mujiv Hataman for believing that progress is the work of the whole community and not one person alone and for having contributed to progress by making sure that mistakes in the past are not repeated.